clearing up the fish fog

Trying to figure out which fish are okay to eat can be tricky. So many questions enter my mind when attempting to decide on the fish I'll consume. Does the fish I'm about to eat contain mercury? Is it overfished? Is there trawling involved, which damages the sea floor? Are other sea creatures getting unintentionally trapped in the nets?

One little tool which helps in the decision process is the handy Monterey Bay Aquarium fish card I carry around with me. On their Seafood Watch site, you can order a free pocket fish card of your own (or more for friends, if you'd like) or just print one out for your particular region. They break it down simply: Best Choices, Good Alternatives, and Avoid. If you're curious about a particular fish, you can also search their online database.

And if you're really curious, they're hosting a webcast next Friday, June 13th where they'll talk about how to cook and eat the fish that are sustainable and how you can be an advocate for our oceans.

fair trade organic love

Chocolate is love. Am I wrong? I mean, scientists even say so. And has anyone ever read the book or seen the film Chocolat? (hello, Johnny Depp is in it!)

Chocolate is especially great if it has no baggage. When I get the craving, I try to reach for fair trade and organic chocolate -- like Green & Black's.

I just whipped up a batch of dark chocolate cupcakes, using the 70% dark variety of G&B's. It's my secret weapon for any chocolate fix. The recipe is at America's Test Kitchen (you have to sign up for the free newsletter to get it). And don't forget the dark chocolate butter cream icing. It's easy to make this whole recipe organic. Just swap out conventional ingredients like flour, sugar, and butter for organic.

You can get Green & Black's at your local supermarket, specialty store, or on Amazon.
And here are some more fair trade organic chocolates:
Dagoba
Endangered Species